"I was never going to have it. I’m too professional. I’ve been at big clubs myself, know how the game works, and that was unacceptable, what was going on. Massively unacceptable. My god, I’ve not seen anything like that."

The Scot didn't name names, but Ibrahim Afellay was banished from training in March after having a blazing row with his manager. Loan star Jese Rodriguez failed to show up for training and was late on numerous occasions, and Saido Berahino and Kevin Wimmer are two others said to have had a poor attitude in general, which is why they were not involved in the club's run-in.

Lambert added: "It was wrong. And if I’d never done it, I think the good guys at the club would have felt they didn’t have much help. And anyone knows me knows that I’m fair, but my standards are high. But it is what it is. There’s a core of good guys, the ones that have been with me for the last few weeks or so."

Lambert's future is currently up in the air, and it remains to be seen if he'll be trusted with guiding Stoke back to the ​Premier League at the first time of asking.